THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Tomas Mojzis (Moose Jaw, Seattle, 2000-03) was recalled from his loan assignment to Sparta Prague (Czech Republic, Extraliga) by Lev Prague (Czech Republic, KHL). He had one goal and two assists in nine games while on assignment to Sparta. This season with Lev, Mojzis is pointless in five games. . . .
F Simon Ferguson (Lethbridge, Kelowna, 1999-2004) signed a contract for the rest of the season with the Sheffield Steelers (England, UK Elite). He had three assists in ten games with Olimpija Ljubljana (Slovenia, Austria Erste Bank Liga) earlier this season. Last season, Ferguson had 18 goals and 33 assists in 40 games with Esbjerg (Denmark, AL-Bank Liga). . . .
F Jan Fadrny (Brandon, Kelowna, 1998-2001) was granted his release for personal reasons by Martin (Slovakia, Extraliga). He had four goals and seven assists in 22 games for Martin this season.
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Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix has written an excellent piece on Saskatoon Blades F Jessey Astles and the aftermath of the wrist surgery that may have ended his season.
Astles, you may recall, was cut by one of his own skates in the aftermath of a line brawl with the visiting Regina Pats on Nov. 9.
It seems that two players suffered skate cuts during that same bunch of scraps.
Regina D Colton Jobke, 20, was cut across the top of one hand. He suffered some severe tendon damage and underwent surgery. The Pats have no idea when he might return to action.
It was because of that injury that the Pats signed D Alex Theriau, 20. With Jobke out indefinitely, Regina had room for a third 20-year-old. Then, during one of their first two games in B.C. on the weekend, they thought they had lost Theriau with a broken collarbone, but it turned out only to be bruised.
Interestingly, the Pats have lost two other players to skate cuts this season. F Chandler Stephenson and F Patrick D’Amico both are out.
D‘Amico was stepped on during practice on Sept. 19 and is out week-to-week.
Stephenson suffered a cut foot during a game against the visiting Tri-City Americans on Oct. 19 and isn’t expected back until perhaps January.
All of these skate cuts — and three of them having happened to Regina players — brings back memories of Josh Holden. A highly skilled centre with the Pats (1994-98), Holden suffered an awful cut to a wrist during Game 2 of a first-round playoff series with the Moose Jaw Warriors. Holden suffered severe tendon damage and underwent immediate surgery. That turned out to be the Holden’s last game in the WHL, as he turned pro the following season. I think it’s fair to say that Holden was never the same player.
Having covered that game, I cringe every time a player loses a glove during game, even today. On Saturday night, Kamloops D Marek Hrbas lost a glove and looked as though he was going to stay on the ice, and it was all I could do to keep from standing up in the press box and yelling at him to get off the ice.
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The Regina Pats are going to honour former star F Jordan Eberle by retiring his number on Dec. 5. The ceremony had been scheduled for earlier this season but had to be postponed because Eberle ended up with the AHL’s Oklahoma City Barons due to the NHL lockout. . . . The Red Deer Rebels will provide the opposition in Regina on Dec. 5 and Eberle is scheduled to be in attendance.
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It seems that Roman Vopat (Moose Jaw, Prince Albert, 1994-96) is out as general manager and head coach of the junior B Kimberley Dynamiters of the Kootenay International Junior League. It seems the organization is setting up a committee to study the operation. . . . Jordan Foreman, who has done this before, is the interim head coach, with help from assistant coach Kris Knoblauch, the former Kootenay Ice head coach. . . . All of this is interesting because the Dynamiters were 14-9 at the time of the move. Last season, under Vopat, they got to Game 7 of their division final. . . .
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The Prince Albert Raiders have brought in G Nick McBride from the major midget Vancouver-North East Chiefs. . . . The Raiders are in Moose Jaw tonight and likely will have McBride, 15, on the bench backing up starter Luke Siemens. McBride was a second-round selection in the WHL’s 2012 bantam draft. . . . Andy Desautels, the Raiders’ No. 2 goaltender, has a broken finger. . . . The Raiders used G Rylan Parenteau of the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts as the backup for a couple of weekend games. . . . Prince Albert may have F Reid Gardiner, 16, back tonight after suffering an undisclosed injury against the visiting Tri-City Americans on Oct. 16. . . . The Warriors, by the way, haven’t played in eight days. Yes, there are some bizarre things about this season’s schedule. . . . Moose Jaw F Miles Warkentine, who has been out since Oct. 13 with a suspected concussion, could return to the lineup tonight.
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D Ryan Murray of the Everett Silvertips has a tear in the labrum in one shoulder. Murray, who was injured Friday in Victoria, had an MRI in Everett. He was selected second overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the NHL’s 2012 draft. He will be in Columbus early next week where the Blue Jackets’ medical staff will evaluate him. A decision then will be made regarding surgery. Chances are Murray will need surgery, meaning he likely will be gone for as long as five months. . . . According to Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald: “Murray suffered a dislocated shoulder during the second period of Everett's 5-0 loss at Victoria last Friday. Murray was defending Victoria's Logan Nelson on a one-on-one when the players collided. Murray felt the shoulder give on the contact, then the problem was compounded when Murray landed awkwardly on the shoulder on the ice.” . . . The injury means Murray won’t play for Canada at the World Junior Championship.
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F Cain Franson, who hasn’t played since suffering a concussion on Oct. 24, may be back in the Vancouver Giants’ lineup tonight as they play the Winterhawks in Portland. . . . Franson has missed 11 games. . . . D Tyler Yaworski of the Brandon Wheat KIngs served a three-game suspension for the hit that took out Franson. . . . Vancouver F Trevor Cheek takes a six-game goal-scoring streak into tonight’s game. He is from Vancouver, Wash., so should have some supporters in the stands in Portland. . . . Elliott Pap of the Vancouver Sun also reports that Giants G Liam Liston is almost ready to return to action. He suffered an ankle injury on Nov. 1 and hopes to practise Friday.
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The Kelowna Rockets hope to have F J.T. Barnett (knee) and F Carter Rigby (shoulder) back this weekend. . . . Barnett has been out for 21 games, while Rigby has watched 14. . . . The Rockets, riding a six-game winning streak on home ice, are at home to the Regina Pats on Friday and the Saskatoon Blades on Saturday.
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G Carey Price is back in the WHL. Yes, he’s 25, but that hasn’t kept him off the ice with his old club, the Tri-City Americans. . . . Annie Fowler of the Tri-City Herald has that story right here.
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The Moose Jaw Warriors announced Tuesday that D Reid Jackson, 19, has been shut down for the season “due to concussion and post-concussion symptoms.” . . . The Warriors acquired Jackson from the Prince George Cougars in May. He had two assists and 12 penalty minutes in 12 games. He also has played with the Lethbridge Hurricanes. . . . Jackson hasn’t played since an Oct. 24 game against the visiting Hurricanes.
The WHL, of course, guards its injury information the way bodyguards protect President Obama. . . . But in attempting to track the number of concussions suffered this season it would appear that number is higher than 24.
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TUESDAY’S GAMES:
In Edmonton, F Stephane Legault scored two PP goals as the Oil Kings scored a 2-1 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Legault scored his first two goals this season in his first game back after a 15-game absence due to a foot injury. . . . Legault’s first goal apparently deflected in off the foot that he had injured. . . . Edmonton Oilers assistant coach Kelly Buchberger, who is good friends with Swift Current GM/head coach Mark Lamb, took part in the Broncos’ morning skate. . . . F Jake DeBrusk, who signed with the Broncos on Monday, also was on the ice. He plays for the Edmonton-South Side Athletic Club’s midget club. . . . The Oil Kings also got F Mitch Moroz back after a three-game injury-related absence. . . .

In Lethbridge, Calgary G Chris Driedger stopped 42 shots as the Hitmen beat the Hurricanes, 3-2. . . . F Carson Samoridny gave Calgary a 3-2 lead at 1:47 of the third period and the Hitmen went on to victory. . . . Lethbridge was 1-for-8 on the PP; the Hitmen were 0-for-3. . . .

In Medicine Hat, G Patrik Bartosak turned aside 43 shots to lead the Red Deer Rebels to a 4-0 victory over the Tigers. . . . Bartosak, a Czech who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury after getting into 25 games last season, has one shutout this season and two in his career. He is11-7-1, 2.56, .930 this season. . . . F Wyatt Johnston’s third goal this season, a shorthanded score at 3:36 of the first period, stood up as the winner. . . . Medicine Hat lost F Curtis Valk with a boarding major and game misconduct at 15:59 of the third period. . . . Red Deer F Rhyse Dieno had one assist. He has four points and is plus-5 in three games since joining the Rebels last week from the SJHL’s La Ronge Timber Wolves. . . . Brent Sutter, the Rebels’ owner/president/GM/interim head coach, is 3-0 since going back behind the bench. . . . The Tigers, who have lost five straight games, remain without F Hunter Shinkaruk, who suffered a skate cut of some sort during a game in Portland on Saturday. . .

In Prince George, F Carson Bolduc scored in the fourth round of the circus to give the Cougars a 4-3 victory over the Regina Pats. . . . The Cougars had lost seven games in a row. . . . The Pats got two first-period goals 41 seconds apart from F Lane Scheidl to go up 2-0. . . . Prince George F Brad Morrison, 15, got his first WHL goal on the PP at 9:49 of the second. Morrison, who was outstanding in his WHL debut on Saturday in Kamloops, was the game’s first star. . . . Bolduc’s first WHL goal, at 15:28 of the second, got the Cougars to within one and F Jarrett Fontaine, with his second goal, tied it at 19:33 of the second. . . . Regina G Matt Hewitt stopped 37 shots, while Prince George’s Mac Engel made 13 saves. . . . Prince George F Alex Forsberg was unsuccessful on a second-period penalty shot. . . . Attendance was 1,454. . . . Regina is 1-0-2 on its B.C. swing that continues tonight in Kamloops. . . . The Pats have points in each of their last four games. . . . The Cougars will play their next four games against the Victoria Royals. They play Friday and Saturday in Victoria and the following Friday and Saturday in Prince George. . . . Seriously. Four straight. . . .

In Victoria, F Jamie Crooks scored twice as the Royals dropped the Saskatoon Blades, 5-2. . . . Crooks, a 20-year-old from Vermilion, Alta., began his WHL career with the Blades, playing eight games in 2009-09 and six in 2009-10 before being dealt to the Chilliwack Bruins (remember them?). . . . The Bruins, of course, morphed into the Royals prior to last season. . . . Saskatoon lost F Shane McColgan in the second period after a collision with Victoria F Luke Harrison. McColgan fell and struck his head. He played one PP shift after that, left the game and didn’t return.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Pavlo Padakin, Calgary
D Tyler Stahl, Victoria (double minor)

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
None
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From Tri-City D Justin Hamonic (@Hammertime6): “If I can move as well as Alice Cooper when I’m 64 I’ll be a happy man. What a show!!”
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From Medicine Hat D Derek Ryckman (@rycks25): “Wishing @reidjackson29 a healthy and quick recovery #niceguybigbush”

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
Val Pusteria/Brunico (Italy, Serie A) announced on its website that D Keith Seabrook (Calgary, 2007-09) has told the team he is retiring from hockey, effective immediately. He had eight goals and 10 assists in 18 games with Val Pusteria this season.
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If you scroll down a bit, you will find the Name The Line contest. Take part and win a signed copy of Sudden Death: The Incredible Saga of the 1986 Swift Current Broncos.
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F Rhett Gardner of the midget AAA Moose Jaw Generals suffered a shoulder injury during The Hockey Academy Showcase in Grand Forks, N.D. Gardner was the Spokane Chiefs’ second-round selection in the 2011 bantam draft but chose not to report to the Chiefs’ training camp prior to this season as he keeps his options open. . . . Gardner, the Generals’ leading scorer, has 23 points in 15 games, good for fourth place in the Saskatchewan Midget AAA league’s scoring race. . . . The Generals went 1-3 at that tournament, losing three games in shootouts. . . .
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SUNDAY’S GAMES:
In Calgary, D Peter Kosterman broke a 2-2 tie at 12:43 of the third period and the Hitmen beat the Swift Current Broncos, 4-2. . . . Ukrainian freshman F Pavlo Padakin scored twice, including an empty-netter, for Calgary. . . . F Graham Black scored both Swift Current goals. He’s got 12. . . . The Broncos have lost two in a row and four of six. . . . Calgary had F Victor Rask in its lineup for the first time this season. A 33-goal man last season, he had been with the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers. . . . As well, Hitmen captain Cody Sylvester returned from a two-game absence with an undisclosed injury to score the game’s first goal. . . . The Hitmen moved one point ahead of idle Edmonton and trails Eastern Conference-leading Prince Albert by one point with two games in hand. . . .

In Everett, F Carson Stadnyk scored twice to give the Silvertips a 2-1 victory over the Medicine Hat Tigers. . . . Stadnyk, 17, from Saskatoon, has three goals in 25 games. . . . He broke a 1-1 tie at 12:43 of the third period. . . . F Curtis Valk got his 16th goal for the Tigers, this one via the PP. . . . Everett G Daniel Cotton stopped 40 shots. . . . The Tigers, who have lost four straight, had a 41-18 edge in shots. . . . The Tigers scratched F Hunter Shinkaruk, who suffered a skate cut to a knee that took 14 stitches on Saturday in Portland, and F Miles Koules (ankle), who also was injured in Portland. . . . Everett was without D Ryan Murray (shoulder). The Silvertips are 2-0-0 since Murray was injured on Friday in Victoria. He should have an MRI early this week in an attempt to get a precise diagnosis. . . . Everett also remains without F Ryan Harrison (knee) and F Josh Winquist (mononucleosis). . . .

In Vancouver, the Saskatoon Blades broke a 2-2 tie with three goals in a span of 4:10 in the third period as they beat the Giants, 5-2. . . . F Nick Zajac broke a 2-2 tie at 11:27 of the third period, with F Matej Stransky scoring at 15:25, on the PP, and D Duncan Siemens scoring at 15:37. . . . D Kyle Schmidt had three assists. . . . Stransky had two goals. . . . The Blades have points in six of their last seven games. After that horrid start, they now are 10-10-1. . . . F Trevor Cheek notched his 10th goal for Vancouver; he is on a six-game goal streak. . . . The Giants were without F Cain Franson for an 11th straight game. He is believed to have a concussion. . . .

The Brandon Wheat Kings, having lost twice to the host Kootenay Ice over the previous two nights, went into Lethbridge and beat the Hurricanes, 5-3. . . . The Hurricanes led 2-1 in the second period when Brandon scored three times in 5:10. . . . Wheat Kings F John Quenneville doubled his goal count to four by scoring twice. . . . Lethbridge D Daniel Johnston had two assists. He has 18 points, including six goals, in 22 games. Last season, in 55 games, the 20-year-old had 30 points, two of them goals. . . . Brandon, which had lost four straight, scratched F Alessio Bertaggia, its leading scorer, with an undisclosed injury. . . .

In Red Deer, the Rebels won their second straight game under interim head coach Brent Sutter, this time beating the visiting Prince Albert Raiders, 6-1. . . . F Matt Bellerive had a goal and two assists for the Rebels, who got three assists from F Joel Hamilton. . . . G Rylan Parenteau made his WHL debut with the Raiders, stopping two of three shots over nine minutes in the third period. Parenteau, who turned 16 on Nov. 6, joined the Raiders earlier in the weekend from the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts. He was a third-round selection by the Raiders in the 2011 bantam draft. . . . G Andy Desautels, who normally backs up Luke Siemens, has been nursing a broken finger and may have banged it up a bit more late last week. . . . Siemens started this one, but was given a rest after stopping 42 shots over 51:06. . . . The Raiders are 5-1-0 in Alberta this season. Last season, they went 2-8-0 in games played in Alberta. . . . Prince Albert captain Mark McNeill, who played in both Subway Super Series games last week, played in his fifth game in as many nights.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
None

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
F Craig Leverton, Lethbridge
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
From Edmonton Oil Kings F Michael St. Croix (@stixy18): “Terrible news that my buddy @papskos17 has to retire from junior hockey due to injury. You are inspiration to all. See you soon!”

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Our latest poll has closed and it was no contest. They don’t call it Win-nipeg for nothing.
The question was: Were the WHL to expand or relocate, what city should be at the top of the list?
In the end, there were 243 responses, with Winnipeg an easy winner, drawing 96 votes or 39 per cent. Langley, B.C., was next, with 68 votes (27 per cent), followed by Chilliwack (40) and Fort McMurray, Alta. (39), both at 16 per cent.
The lineup to get a team into Winnipeg forms on the left.
A new poll is up over there on the right, this one dealing with the NHL lockout.
Thanks for taking part.
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According to a report in the Columbus Dispatch, D Austin Madaisky, 20, needs surgery on a wrist and could miss up to three months of action. . . . Madaisky, who is under contract to the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets and with the ECHL-Evansville IceMen, told me Saturday night that report is “a little pre-mature.” . . . Madaisky is to go to Columbus on Monday to meet with the team’s medical staff, “then see what they say.” . . . The doctors in Evansville have told him that he may have torn a ligament known as a scapholunate in one wrist but have suggested he get a second opinion. . . . Madaisky also said that he wasn’t injured while playing with the IceMen. He said the wrist has bothered him since he was in camp with the AHL-Springfield Falcons. . . . He has five points, including a goal, in eight games with Evansville.
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D Ryan Murray of the Everett Silvertips suffered a separated or dislocated shoulder — there are reports out there indicating one or the other — in Friday night’s 5-0 loss to the Royals in Victoria.
He has to undergo an MRI, something that is expected to happen in the next day or two. The extent of the damage then will be known.
Murray, the second overall pick in the NHL‘s 2012 draft, has signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He also is a lock for a roster spot with Canada’s national junior team.
“It’s not good news,” Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson told Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch. “Right now his arm is in a sling, held tight to his body, and he’s in a lot of pain He’ll have an MRI early this week, and then we’ll know more.
“You’ll have to see how much damage he’s done to the labrum. Does he have any broken bones from the thrust of the fall? Once it’s come out, it tends to come out easier in the future. Our doctors will take a look at the tests and we’ll decide the next step.”
Last season, Murray suffered a high ankle sprain in October and only just got back in time to play for Canada in the world junior championship.
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The Saskatoon Blades will play their second game of a B.C. Division swing today in Vancouver against the Giants. And Saskatoon has added D Matthew Pufahl to its list of walking wounded. Pufahl, 19, has an undisclosed injury after taking a hit from behind from Prince George Cougars F Caleb Belter on Friday night. Saskatoon also is without F Jessey Astles (wrist), F Brett Stovin (undisclosed) and D Dalton Thrower (undisclosed). . . . The Blades will get a look at F Nick Gomerich today and F Landyn Hickmott on Tuesday in Victoria. Both play for B.C. major midget teams -- Gomerich, a sixth-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft, is with the Nanaimo-North Island Silvertips, while Hickmott, a third-rounder in 2011, is with the Abbotsford-Fraser Valley Thunderbirds. Hickmott was the Blades’ first selection in that 2011 draft, going 66th overall.
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Former Spokane Chiefs D Jared Cowen underwent surgery Saturday and is expected to be sidelined for up to eight months. Cowen, who plays for the NHL’s Ottawa Senators but had been with the AHL-Binghamton Senators during the lockout, had a torn labrum in his left hip.
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In the AJHL on Friday night, the Grande Prairie Storm dumped the visiting Brooks Bandits, 4-1. The Bandits had gone into the game 20-0. The victory ran the Storm’s winning streak to nine games. . . . The Bandits set an AJHL record for longest winning streak from the start of a season; the Olds Grizzlies opened 1993-94 with 18 straight victories. . . . The Bandits fell one game short of tying the AJHL record for longest winning streak, though. The Calgary Canucks set that record at 21 in 1987-88.
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SATURDAY’S GAMES:
In Cranbrook, G Mackenzie Skapski stopped 28 shots to help the Kootenay Ice to a 4-0 victory over the Brandon Wheat Kings. . . . Skapski has three shutouts this season and three in his career. . . . The Wheat Kings, who have lost four in a row, were blanked for the first time this season. . . . The Ice swept the doubleheader, having beaten the visiting Wheat Kings 5-3 on Friday. . . . F Sam Reinhart scored the Ice’s first two goals. He has eight on the season. . . .

In Edmonton, G Luke Siemens stopped 50 shots and F Shane Danyluk scored in OT as the Prince Albert Raiders beat the Oil Kings, 4-3. . . . Danyluk has three goals this season. . . . The Raider led 3-0 late in the second period when the Oil Kings mounted a comeback. . . . Edmonton F Michael St. Croix forced OT when he scored at 16:17 of the third period. . . . Danyluk won it at 3:35 of OT. . . . The Raiders brought in G Rylan Parenteau from the midget AAA Saskatoon Blazers. He is 6-2-0, 2.86, .897 with the Blazers. Parenteau was a third-round pick in the 2011 bantam draft. . . . Parenteau was on the bench backing up Siemens, replacing Andy Desautels who was in that role in Friday’s 3-2 victory in Lethbridge. . . . The Raiders (15-6-2) moved into first place in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of Edmonton (13-5-4). . . . The Raiders have beaten the Oil Kings three times this season. . . .

In Kennewick, Wash., F Justin Feser scored two shorthanded goals 1:01 apart in the first period and the Tri-City Americans celebrated their 25th anniversary with a 3-2 victory over the Kelowna Rockets. . . . Feser’s 16th and 17th goals of the season gave the Americans a 3-0 lead. . . . Feser has 128 career goals. That puts him into seventh place on the Americans’ all-time list, one ahead of F Dylan Gyori. . . . The Rockets got second-period goals from Rourke Chartier and Ryan Olsen but couldn’t equalize. . . . Tri-City G Eric Comrie stopped 42 shots. . . . One night earlier, Comrie stopped 41 shots in a 3-2 victory over those same Rockets. . . . The Rockets had won five in a row going into Friday’s game. . . .

In Victoria, F Morgan Klimchuk broke a 2-2 tie at 19:34 of the third period to give the Regina Pats a 3-2 victory over the Royals. . . . Klimchuk’s goal, his 13th, came 2:06 after D Jordan Fransoo had pulled the Royals into a 2-2 tie. . . . Regina G Teagan Sacher stopped 32 shots. . . . Pats D Luke Fenske had three assists. . . . Regina opened its B.C. Division swing with a 4-3 shootout loss in Vancouver on Friday. . . . The Pats play in Prince George on Tuesday and Kamloops on Wednesday. . . .

In Everett, the Silvertips scored the game’s last two goals to beat the Vancouver Giants, 6-5. . . . F Ty Mappin, with his second goal this season, pulled Everett into a tie at 11:13 of the third. . . . F Reid Petryk, with his second of the game, won it at 15:30. . . . The Silvertips played without D Ryan Murray (shoulder), who was injured Friday night in a 5-0 loss in Victoria. . . . The six goals were a season-high for Everett. Not only that, Everett had scored only five goals in its previous six games. . . . D Austin Adam (broken hand) returned to the Silvertips’ lineup. He was injured on the season’s opening weekend. . . .

In Portland, F Taylor Leier and F Ty Rattie had two goals apiece as the Winterhawks dumped the Medicine Hat Tigers, 5-2. . . . Portland F Brendan Leipsic had two assists, giving him eight straight multi-point games and running his point streak to 10 games. He has 23 points, including nine goals, in those 10 games. . . . The Winterhawks had their 12-game winning streak end Friday when they lost 6-4 in Kamloops. . . . F Nic Petan added three assists for Portland. . . . Medicine Hat F Hunter Shinkaruk left in the first period after taking a check from Portland D Seth Jones. Shinkaruk apparently suffered a skate cut of some kind. . . . Rattie has 14 goals, while Leier has eight. . . .

In Red Deer, F Turner Elson, the team captain, broke a 1-1 tie at 7:32 of the third period as the Rebels beat the Swift Current Broncos, 2-1. . . . It was owner/president/general manager Brent Sutter’s first game as the Rebels’ interim head coach. He removed Jesse Wallin as head coach earlier in the week. . . . F Rhyse Dieno, who was added to the Red Deer roster on Friday, had the Rebels’ other goal. . . .

In Kamloops, F JC Lipon, the WHL scoring leader, struck for two goals and the winner in the circus as the Blazers got past the Prince George Cougars, 5-4. . . . Immediately after the game, Kamloops F Jordan DePape, 20, informed his teammate that he was ending his WHL career thanks to a shoulder injury that needs surgery. There will be more on DePape and his decision right here early Monday morning. . . . The Cougars held 2-0 and 4-3 leads, the latter coming when F Ryan Hanes, a Kamloops native and former Blazers skater, scored at 12:56 of the third period on the PP. He was playing his second game with the Cougars since joining them from the BCHL’s Cowichan Valley Capitals. . . . Lipon tied it at 15:24 with his 21st goal of the season. He became the WHL’s first 20-goal man this season when he scored the Blazers’ first goal, at 12:52 of the second. . . . Last season, Lipon had 19 goals in 69 games. . . . With the second goal, Lipon became the WHL’s first 50-point scorer this season. He leads the WHL in goals (21) and points (50). . . . Linemate Colin Smith had two assists and has 49 points. . . . F Brad Morrison, 15, picked up one assist in his WHL debut with the Cougars. By the third period, Morrison, the seventh overall selection in the 2012 bantam draft, was playing on perhaps the Cougars’ best line, with Alex Forsberg and Hanes. . . . F Cole Ully also scored twice for Kamloops. . . .

In Kent, Wash., F Todd Fiddler scored three times to lead the Spokane Chiefs to a 3-1 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . Fiddler has 15 goals in 22 this season after scoring 12 times in 73 games last season. He had four goals in 35 games with Prince Albert, before scoring eight times in 38 games after being acquired by the Chiefs. . . . He scored at 1:30 of the second period and 14:32 of the third to give the Chiefs a 2-0 lead. He later added his third goal into an empty net to complete the first hat trick of his career. . . . Fiddler finished last season with 28 points in those 73 games. He has 26 points in 22 games this season.
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CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
D Tyler Yaworski, Brandon
D Tanner Faith, Kootenay
F Rob Trzonkowski, Kamloops

CHECKING-TO-THE-HEAD COUNT:
F Lucas Grayson, Everett
F Reid Petryk, Everett
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TWEET OF THE DAY:
Jordan DePape (@papskos17): “Wow, so thankful for all this support! Can’t believe it. Thank you. My phone has literally exploded and died in a matter of 30 minutes.”
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TWEET OF THE DAY II:
From Portland Winterhawks F Brendan Leipsic (@leip28): “Congrats on a great career @papskos sorry it had to end like this. #seeyousoon”
Leipsic and DePape both are from Winnipeg.
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TWEET OF THE DAY III:
From Prince George Cougars F Brock Hirsche (@bigsexytweet10): “@papskos17 best of luck in the future. I know what you are going through.”
Hirsche is fighting shoulder woes for a second straight season. He was on the Cougars’ bench as an assistant coach last night in Kamloops.
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TWEET OF THE DAY IV:
From Prince George F Ryan Hanes (@HANESR13): “Thank you to everyone who came out tonight! Fans are amazing even when I’m a cougar now! Love it!”


There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

Just wondering . . .

Ten things I wonder about:

1. Does F Liam Stewart of the Spokane Chiefs have a copy of his father’s Christmas album? If so, does he listen to it? (Has Liam read his dad’s book yet?)

2. Are you aware that I will be on SportsTalk with Dan Russell tonight? We chatted for almost an hour recently and he’s playing that conversation tonight. Yes, it’s all about Sudden Death: The Incredible Saga of the 1986 Swift Current Broncos. (Listeners to CBC Regina will be able to hear an interview with Ted Deller that was taped Friday morning. I also have done an interview with CBC Kamloops that will be played sometime next week. . . . You also will be able to hear me with Shawn Mullin, the play-by-play voice of the Swift Current Broncos, during an intermission on Saturday or Sunday.)

3. How can the Los Angeles Lakers fire head coach Mike Brown when his big four — Kobe, Paul Gasol, Dwight Howard and Steve Nash — were on the floor together for a total of 45 minutes during the 1-4 start?

4. Do you care that the NHL and NHLPA have spent time talking this week, or is this a case of ‘Wake me when it’s over?’ ”

5. Are you aware that F Roman Horak of the Abbotsford Heat is leading the AHL in goals, with 10? Horak, whose NHL rights belong to the Calgary Flames, played two seasons (2009-11) for the WHL’s Chilliwack Bruins. Surely, you remember them.

6. Might the 5,500-seat Langley Events Centre, at some point in time, end up as the home to a WHL franchise? In the last two weeks, I have had two long-time WHL watches tell me that the league would be much better off there than it was in Chilliwack.

7. How much impact have the TV cameras that are documenting the Saskatoon Blades’ every move had on the team’s shaky start? And if the adults in charge had it to do all over again would they cut the same deal? It’s all four a 24/7-type show that is being tied in with the Blades being the host team for the 2013 Memorial Cup.

8. The Kamloops Blazers and Portland Winterhawks, the team’s with the WHL’s best winning percentages going into the weekend, will play Sunday in the Rose City. But with each team playing its third game in as many nights will that be a real test? Or will a better test come Nov. 16 in Kamloops when both teams will be coming off four off days?

9. What will the Everett Silvertips do with D Ryan Murray? The Silvertips are 6-13-2 and have lost seven in a row as the weekend begins. What is the asking price if the NHL talks break off and it looks as though the season is in jeopardy? What is the asking break if there remains a chance that the NHL season may get started at some point?

10. Where have the fans gone in Kelowna? The Rockets are drawing about 5,300 fans per game, down more than 700 from recent seasons. Bruce Hamilton, the president and general manager, told AM1150 play-by-play man Regan (Clark Griswold) Bartel that a lot of former season-ticket holders didn’t renew because they are wintering in the south. But, sheesh, isn’t that a lot of ticket-holding snowbirds flying south at one time?

And a freebie — Whatever happened to the WHL’s Ask The Commissioner on Facebook? Just wondering . . .

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Blazers run winning streak to 14

Colin Smith (9) stands to the left of celebrating teammates after his
shootout goal gave the Kamloops Blazers a 3-2 victory over the
host Everett Silvertips on Tuesday night.
(CHRISTOPHER MAST / MASTIMAGES.COM)

By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
Move over, 1986-87.
You’re outta here, 1989-90.
The 2012-13 edition of the Kamloops Blazers wrote its name in the franchise record book Tuesday night, beating the host Everett Silvertips 3-2 on a shootout goal by centre Colin Smith at Comcast Arena.
“It’s amazing,” offered Kamloops head coach Guy Charron. “We keep finding ways to win.”
This was the Blazers’ 14th consecutive WHL victory, erasing the record first established by the 1986-87 team and equalled in 1989-90. Mark Recchi, one of the team’s five co-owners, played 40 games with the Blazers in 1986-87; Darryl Sydor, another owner, played 67 games with the 1989-90 team.
The 1986-87 Blazers began their streak with a 7-6 victory over the visiting Portland Winterhawks on Oct. 21. They got to 13 with a 15-8 victory over the visiting Victoria Cougars on Nov. 21. The streak ended the next night with a 6-5 loss in Victoria. The Blazers finished 55-14-3, good for first place in the six-team West Division, but then lost a best-of-nine conference final to Portland in eight games.
In 1989-90, the streak also began on Oct. 21, this time with a 4-3 victory over the Chiefs in Spokane. On Nov. 18, the Blazers hit 13 in a row by beating the Tigers 5-1 in Medicine Hat. One night later, Kamloops was beaten 10-8 by the host Lethbridge Broncos. The Blazers went 56-16-0 to win the West Division and later beat Lethbridge 4-1 in the WHL’s championship final.
This season, the Blazers are 16-0-1. The only blemish is a 4-3 shootout loss to the Royals in Victoria on Sept. 28. Two nights later, the Blazers beat the host Royals 3-0 and Kamloops hasn’t looked back.
The Blazers already lead the B.C. Division by 15 points and are 11 points clear atop the Western Conference standings.
Smith was the only one of the shootout’s six particpants to score.
"It wasn't our best game, but the important thing is we found a way to win," Smith told Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald. "Any time you're able to put your stamp on things in club history, as much history as we have, it's something special for our group."
Kamloops head coach Guy Charron said Everett head coach Mark Ferner and his staff put together a game plan that often frustrated the Blazers. 
“I thought Everett played very well,” Charron said. “They really clogged up the neutral zone. It’s something no team had done to us before so credit to Mark.
“We got frustrated from it. . . . the kids were a little frustrated. We were constantly turning the puck over.”
"We can't be happy with the outcome, but we're definitely happy with the effort," Everett captain Ryan Murray told Patterson. "We did all the right things out there and I thought we played a great game. But when you're playing a team that good, even if you play a great game it still might not go your way."
Everett opened the scoring when forward Ryan Harrison scored while his side was enjoying a two-man advantage at 9:12 of the first period.
The Blazers had a golden opportunity to pull even at 18:19 when Dylan Willick was awarded a penalty shot. However, the veteran centre fired the puck over the Everett net.
The Blazers thought they had pulled even in the second period when left-winger Chase Souto tipped in a shot from defenceman Tyler Hansen. However, referee Mike Campbell ruled that the puck had been deflected by a high stick and video review upheld that decision.
Right-winger JC Lipon, who leads the WHL in goals (16) and points (40), pulled the Blazers even at 9:48 of the third period, only to have Everett forward Carson Stadnyk score 1:05 later.
Stadnyk, a 17-year-old freshman from Saskatoon, scored his first WHL goal in his 16th game this season.
Souto got the Blazers even again, scoring his second goal of the season at 14:39. Smith drew an assist on Souto’s goal to run his point streak to 17 games.
“When they scored the second goal, I thought, ‘Oh, maybe’,” Charron admitted. “But Souts came up with a big goal and we found a way in the shootout.”
Interestingly, Souto had been a healthy scratch from a couple of recent games.
"We knew they were going to get their opportunities, but at the same time I thought we did a good job just containing them and protecting the areas we need to protect," Ferner told Patterson.
"Our veterans were very good tonight, our rookies were very good. Obviously we were missing some key bodies and that did hurt us at the end. But the other guys stepped up. I thought we were good right from our goalie out."
The Blazers got a big game from their penalty killers and from goaltender Cole Cheveldave, who ran his record to 11-0-0.
“I know we gave up one (power-play goal), but two 5-on-3s. . . they did an exceptional job,” Charron said. “The penalty killers came through tonight, for sure.”
So did Cheveldave, who stopped 20 shots through overtime and three more in the shootout.
“He’s a big part of penalty kill,” Charron said. “He’s a big part of a lot of things.”
The Blazers are back in action Thursday when they meet the Rockets in Kelowna. Kamloops is at home to the Prince George Cougars on Friday. Game time at Interior Savings Centre is 7 p.m.
JUST NOTES: Attendance was 3,074. . . . The Blazers were 0-for-4 on the PP; the Silvertips were 1-for-8. . . . Everett G Austin Lotz stopped 26 shots. . . . F Aspen Sterzer was back with the Blazers after missing three games while attending a funeral in Calgary. . . . The Blazers scratched D Tyler Bell (undisclosed), F Mitch Friesen (undisclosed), D Jordan Thomson and F Aaron Macklin. . . . The Silvertips were without D Nick Walters (WHL suspension), F Josh Winquist (flu) and D Austin Adam (hand).

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THE MacBETH REPORT:
D Travis Ehrhardt (Moose Jaw, Portland, 2004-09) signed a one-year contract with TPS Turku (Finland, SM-Liiga) after a successful try-out. Ehrhardt had one goal and six assists in 41 games with the Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL) last season. The TPS press release (in Finnish) with picture is right here.
———
Another email from a fan of the Whitney Forum:
“Noticed your comment on the Whitney Forum. The place is incredible. Team photos lining the walls from as early as the 1920s, championship banners, hockey hall of fame. Spent 5 years with the Bombers, 4 with Norm Johnston who guided the team to their last championship in 1992-93 restoring the pride to the Bursting B. The Bombers are having a 20th anniversary of that championship September 28-29 with at least 15 of the 23 players returning. There is a story on the Bomber website.”
Indeed, there is news of that reunion right here.
The writer also notes that “an interesting view on youtube is highlights of that series, game 6 in Flin Flon with over 3,000 jammed in the Forum that has a capaciy of 1800 and a jammed Melville Stadium with 10 bus loads from Flin Flon for game 7.”
Having been in Melville for that Game 7, I can attest to the craziness in the building that night. I can only guess at what Game 6 in Whitney Forum must have been like.
———
The Vancouver Giants will open the season with Liam Liston, 19, and Tyler Fuhr, 17, as their goaltenders. . . . On Wednesday, the Giants assigned Payton Lee, 16, to the junior B Richmond Sockeyes of the Pacific International league. Lee, a second-round selection in the 2011 bantam draft, is seen as the club’s goaltender of the future. . . . Liston was acquired from the Lethbridge Hurricanes over the summer, while Fuhr, who is from Sherwood Park, Alta., and not related to Grant Fuhr, was perhaps the biggest success story of Vancouver’s training camp. He was a fourth-round selection by the Brandon Wheat Kings the 2010 bantam draft but was a free agent when he arrived in Vancouver’s camp.
———
The Regina Pats spent part of Wednesday helping Habitat for Humanity on a project. Greg Harder of the Regina Leader-Post was there and discovered something of a competition between the city and rural players.
An excerpt from Harder’s story . . .
“I got to go there and work and show the city slickers what to do,” offered forward Dyson Stevenson, who has some carpentry experience working on his family farm near Shaunavon. “I got to use the table saw. I was working with (goaltender Matt Hewitt), he was doing my measurements. I think every three measurements I had to re-cut a board because he had no idea what he was doing. Then he wanted to cut. I let him do the last board. I was pretty scared. I had my glasses on and was about 10 feet away from the tablesaw when he was trying to cut it. I’m surprised he didn’t get his fingers caught in there.”
Harder’s story is right here.
———
Daniel Nugent-Bowman of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix reports that Lorne Molleken, the Blades’ GM/head coach, “is taking part in the Food Basket Challenge, where he will attempt to live off items from a food bank basket for the next week. Molleken begins his challenge this morning.”
According to Nugent-Bowman, Molleken “receives a basket from the Saskatoon Food Bank, five basic pantry items and a food allowance of $5 for the next seven days.”
That story is right here.
———
Nugent-Bowman also reported that the Blades have ordered all of their defencemen to wear Shot Blockers, plastic guards that fit over their skates and are designed to absorb most of the blow caused by blocked shots.
“It’s a situation where we expect our players to pay a price and part of that is blocking shots,” Molleken told Nugent-Bowman. “It’s a huge part of the game today. We’re hoping that this will prevent any type of foot injury.”
That story is right here.
———
D Ryan Murray was back on the ice with the Everett Silvertips on Wednesday. Murray, who was taken by Columbus with the second overall pick of the 2012 NHL draft, would be going to camp with the Blue Jackets if not for the labour problems at that level.
The Silvertips captain didn’t get shown a whole lot of respect during his first practice.
As Nick Patterson of the Everett Herald wrote: “. . . in his first practice with the team he sacrificed some blood to the hockey gods.”
It turns out that F Ty Mappin caught Murray with an elbow.
"(Mappin) caught me with a little elbow there in the corner," a laughing Murray told Patterson. "It's the way she goes, though. I guess that's my welcome back."
———
If you aren’t aware, Richard Doerksen, who handles discipline for the WHL, already has been busy.
And he dropped the hammer on Wednesday when he suspended Victoria Royals D Tyler Stahl for six games for a checking-to-the-head major and game misconduct from a game against the Kelowna Rockets on Friday.
The exhibition season isn’t even over and Doerksen has suspended 10 players for a total of 21 games. Of that total, 14 games have been dished out for checking-to-the-head penalties.
You are free to wonder if this is the season when Doerksen, the WHL’s vice-president, hockey, starts handing out 10- and 20-game sentences.
———
The Moose Jaw Civic Centre (aka the Crushed Can) is gone. If you click right here, it will take you to a cbc.ca compilation of photos that mark the demolition of the arena.
———
The Tri-City Americans have added another defenceman to their stable, with the acquisition of Brodie Clowes from the Victoria Royals for a fifth-round pick in the 2014 bantam draft. . . . Clowes will turn 17 on Oct. 30. . . . Clowes, from Calgary, was selected by Victoria in the fifth round of the 2010 bantam draft. . . . The 6-foot-2, 185-pounder played 46 games with the AJHL’s Olds Grizzlys, earning 13 points and 56 penalty minutes. . . . Clowes suffered an undisclosed injury in Victoria’s camp and is expected to miss the season’s first month. . . . Even without Clowes, the Americans are carrying nine defencemen, with six of those having been contributors to the Tri-City cause last season.
———
D Derrick Pouliot of the Portland Winterhawks has signed a three-year, entry-level deal with the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins. . . . Pouliot, a 5-foot-11, 195-pounder from Weyburn, Sask., was the eighth-overall pick in the 2012 NHL draft. . . . He had 59 points in 72 games last season, his second with the Winterhawks, and then added 17 points in the playoffs.
———
The Red Deer Rebels kept their roster at 26 after assigning two players and adding two others. . . . F Dexter Bricker, 17, is to join the SJHL’s Nipawin Hawks, while F Vukie Mpofu, 16, will play for the midget AAA Saskatoon Contacts. Both players are from Saskatoon. . . . Red Deer added F Ryley Bennefield, 18, to their roster on a tryout basis. A native of Wetaskiwin, Alta., he had been in camp with the Calgary Hitmen and scored twice in three exhibition games. A second-round pick by the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the 2009 bantam draft, he has played three games with Lethbridge and six with the Portland Winterhawks over the last three season. . . . The Rebels also are taking a look at F Wyatt Johnson, 17, who played last season with the midget AAA Saskatoon Blazers. He had 45 points in 42 games with the Blazers. He had been in the Vancouver Giants’ camp and will get checked out in Red Deer because he has been out with a concussion.
———
There was some ugliness in an SM-liiga exhibition game between HIFK and Jokerit in Finland recently and a whole whack of suspensions were handed out. That included eight-game suspensions to three coaches.
There’s more right here.

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